The CIO-Millennial Divide: New Bomgar-Sponsored Research Shows IT Leaders Struggling to Keep Up with

JACKSON, MS - August 16, 2011 - Bomgar, the worldwide leader in secure, appliance-based remote support solutions, in conjunction with GigaOM Pro, today released new research concerning the newest generation of workers known as the Millennials, and their expectations for IT support. Born in the 1980s and ‘90s, Millennials have grown up in an instantaneous world with ever-present mobile phones, ubiquitous online access and a constant connection to friends and family via social channels. Perceived by some to be a coddled generation, Millennials are now bringing those same instantaneous, always-on expectations into the workforce, challenging IT support organizations. But the research indicates that many Millennials also prefer lower cost support channels and possess a desire to solve their own technology issues, creating opportunities for IT departments to improve efficiency and cut costs while increasing Millennials’ satisfaction.

“Our research highlights the biggest challenges for IT departments: Millennials expect immediate responses, prefer a wider variety of communication channels and, when it comes to problem solving, often turn to Google and outside resources before contacting support,” said David Card, research director at GigaOM Pro. “Overall, IT organizations are faring pretty well to support Millennials’ need for mobility, but they need to work on creating support systems that cater to Millennials’ desire for immediacy, self-sufficiency and collaboration.”

Key Findings from Millennial Survey - Millennials in the enterprise: strategies for supporting the new digital workforce.

The study also found that most Millennials initially seek outside sources to solve their own technology problems versus immediately turning to the IT department when something goes awry. Sixty-one percent said they don’t go to company support first, and the majority (71 percent) had searched for an answer on Google at least once. In addition to their need for speed, the survey revealed Millennials want to solve their own problems for convenience and self-sufficiency. In general, Millennials are finding alternative paths to problem resolution, not because they are oblivious or dismissive of company procedures, but because they strive to be self-sufficient and are increasingly comfortable with search and social channels.

As discovered in the first survey, Millennials feel that ten minutes or less is more than enough time for an IT problem to be solved when at work. To no surprise, the second survey revealed that IT managers feel differently. About 25 percent said an hour to more than an hour was a reasonable time frame for technology issues to be solved. Despite the fact that IT departments have to handle requests from entire enterprises, and that each must be prioritized based on severity and scale, the instant gratification that Millennials are experiencing in the consumer world is still influencing their expectations for immediacy from IT.

“The Millennials are coming whether IT is prepared or not,” said Nathan McNeill, chief strategy officer at Bomgar. “There are definitely gaps between the expectations of this influx of younger workers and what IT support organizations currently deliver, but all hope is not lost. By adjusting traditional IT processes to create a more real-time and collaborative support model, we can not only make Millennials happier, but also improve the efficiency and effectiveness of IT departments overall.”

Bomgar is the worldwide leader in secure, appliance-based remote support solutions. The company’s award-winning solutions enable organizations to improve IT support efficiency by securely accessing and managing virtually any system - Windows, Mac, Linux, BlackBerry, Android, the iPhone, iPad and most versions of Windows Mobile, regardless of their location. More than 5,500 companies around the world have deployed Bomgar’s enterprise-class solutions to rapidly transform their IT support functions and significantly improve operational efficiency and customer satisfaction while dramatically reducing costs. Bomgar is privately-held with offices in Jackson, Atlanta, San Francisco, Washington D.C., Paris and London. In 2010, Bomgar was named one of the fastest-growing technology companies in America by Deloitte.

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